Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Lessons of Gold

Lessons of Gold

'Twas not the softer stages of life
that taught me the Lessons of Gold.
But rather, it was hard times & trials by faith
where God's Word was all I could hold.
For there in the hours of dark desperation
I saw God as I finally should;
As the one to move on my behalf
and do what only He could.
It was there in the silence when sorrow begged
the tears that ran down my face,
That God taught me true comfort and tendered my heart
as He loved me there in that place.
It was in those chapters where all of me was spent,
but my lack of strength set me free.
For there in my frailty, I looked up to find
that God's grace was sufficient for me.
It was through the baffling, hard problems of life
when others had no answers to find,
That I discovered the true source of wisdom
-was my God who is perfect and kind.
It was learning to submit and wait on God
that actually put me ahead.
For I've been blessed by things that I couldn't change
when God used them to change me instead.

© Sheila Gosney

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. Romans 8:28-30 NKJV

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Life...!

I have really been hit over and over but today was not what I ever thought would be happening to me as they have done MRI's and CT scans and they cannot figure out what is happening to my body..then today after being at so many specialist he sat and sat...then I got really nervous and I don't usually feel this way but I could tell something was not going right...he then ordered one more MRI and then wants a workup with a Neurologist...for MS? My heart just sank and I kept it together until I got to the parking lot...then the tears came...it has been a tough 10 years and now after all the fighting to hang on I get told this today..just trying to face more tests and doctors...so tired of it all...Please keep me in your prayers...hugs, cheryl

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Tony Snow's essay on Life...a must read! Will put life in perspecitve for you...I just cried!

This is an outstanding essay from Tony Snow, President Bush's Press Secretary, and his fight with cancer. Commentator and broadcaster Tony Snow announced that he had colon cancer in 2005. Following surgery and chemo-therapy, Snow joined the Bush Administration in April 2006 as press secretary. Unfortunately, on March 23, 2007, Snow, 51, a husband and father of three, announced the cancer had recurred, with tumors found in his abdomen,- leading to surgery in April, followed by more chemotherapy. Snow went back to work in the White House Briefing Room on May 30, but resigned, 'for economic reasons,' and to pursue ' other interests.' Tony lost his fight with cancer.

Tony's essay:


'Blessings arrive in unexpected packages, - in my case, cancer. Those of us with potentially fatal diseases - and there are millions in America today - find ourselves in the odd position of coping with our mortality while trying to fathom God's will. Although it would be the height of presumption to declare with confidence 'What It All Means,' Scripture provides powerful hints and consolations.

The first is that we shouldn't spend too much time trying to answer the why' questions: Why me? Why must people suffer? Why can't someone else get sick? We can't answer such things, and the questions themselves often are designed more to express our anguish than to solicit an answer.

I don't know why I have cancer, and I don't much care. It is what it is, a plain and indisputable fact. Yet even while staring into a mirror darkly, great and stunning truths begin to take shape. Our maladies define a central feature of our existence: We are fallen. We are imperfect. Our bodies give out.

But despite this, - or because of it, - God offers the possibility of salvation and grace. We don't know how the narrative of our lives will end, but we get to choose how to use the interval between now and the moment we meet our Creator face-to-face.

Second, we need to get past the anxiety. The mere thought of dying can send adrenaline flooding through your system. A dizzy, unfocused panic seizes you. Your heart thumps; your head swims. You think of nothingness and swoon. You fear partings; you worry about the impact on family and friends. You fidget and get nowhere.


To regain footing, remember that we were born not into death, but into life,- and that the journey continues after we have finished our days on this earth. We accept this on faith, but that faith is nourished by a conviction that stirs even within many non believing hearts - an intuition that the gift of life, once given, cannot be taken away. Those who have been stricken enjoy the special privilege of being able to fight with their might, main, and faith to live fully, richly, exuberantly - no matter how their days may be numbered.

Third, we can open our eyes and hearts. God relishes surprise. We want lives of simple, predictable ease,- smooth, even trails as far as the eye can see, - but God likes to go off-road. He provokes us with twists and turns. He places us in predicaments that seem to defy our endurance; and comprehension - and yet don't. By His love and grace, we persevere. The challenges that make our hearts leap and stomachs churn invariably strengthen our faith and grant measures of wisdom and joy we would not experience otherwise.

'You Have Been Called'. Picture yourself in a hospital bed. The fog of anesthesia has begun to wear away. A doctor stands at your feet, a loved one holds your hand at the side. 'It's cancer,' the healer announces.

The natural reaction is to turn to God and ask him to serve as a cosmic Santa. 'Dear God, make it all go away. Make everything simpler.' But another voice whispers: 'You have been called.' Your quandary has drawn you closer to God, closer to those you love, closer to the issues that matter,- and has dragged into insignificance the banal concerns that occupy our 'normal time.'

There's another kind of response, although usually short-lived an inexplicable shudder of excitement, as if a clarifying moment of calamity has swept away everything trivial and tiny, and placed before us the challenge of important questions.

The moment you enter the Valley of the Shadow of Death, things change. You discover that Christianity is not something doughy, passive, pious, and soft. Faith may be the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. But it also draws you into a world shorn of fearful caution. The life of belief teems with thrills, boldness, danger, shocks, reversals, triumphs, and epiphanies. Think of Paul, traipsing through the known world and contemplating trips to what must have seemed the antipodes ( Spain ), shaking the dust from his sandals, worrying not about the morrow, but only about the moment.

There's nothing wilder than a life of humble virtue, - for it is through selflessness and service that God wrings from our bodies and spirits the most we ever could give, the most we ever could offer, and the most we ever could do.

Finally, we can let love change everything. When Jesus was faced with the prospect of crucifixion, he grieved not for himself, but for us. He cried for Jerusalem before entering the holy city. From the Cross, he took on the cumulative burden of human sin and weakness, and begged for forgiveness on our behalf.

We get repeated chances to learn that life is not about us, that we acquire purpose and satisfaction by sharing in God's love for others. Sickness gets us part way there. It reminds us of our limitations and dependence. But it also gives us a chance to serve the healthy. A minister friend of mine observes that people suffering grave afflictions often acquire the faith of two people, while loved ones accept the burden of two peoples' worries and fears.

'Learning How to Live'. Most of us have watched friends as they drifted toward God's arms, not with resignation, but with peace and hope. In so doing, they have taught us not how to die, but how to live. They have emulated Christ by transmitting the power and authority of love.

I sat by my best friend's bedside a few years ago as a wasting cancer took him away. He kept at his table a worn Bible and a 1928 edition of the Book of Common Prayer. A shattering grief disabled his family, many of his old friends, and at least one priest. Here was an humble and very good guy, someone who apologized when he winced with pain because he thought it made his guest uncomfortable. He retained his equanimity and good humor literally until his last conscious moment. 'I'm going to try to beat [this cancer],' he told me several months before he died. 'But if I don't, I'll see you on the other side.'

His gift was to remind everyone around him that even though God doesn't promise us tomorrow, he does promise us eternity, - filled with life and love we cannot comprehend, - and that one can in the throes of sickness point the rest of us toward timeless truths that will help us weather future storms.

Through such trials, God bids us to choose: Do we believe, or do we not? Will we be bold enough to love, daring enough to serve, humble enough to submit, and strong enough to acknowledge our limitations? Can we surrender our concern in things that don't matter so that we might devote our remaining days to things that do?

When our faith flags, he throws reminders in our way. Think of the prayer warriors in our midst. They change things, and those of us who have been on the receiving end of their petitions and intercessions know it. It is hard to describe, but there are times when suddenly the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, and you feel a surge of the Spirit. Somehow you just know: Others have chosen, when talking to the Author of all creation, to lift us up, - to speak of us!

This is love of a very special order. But so is the ability to sit back and appreciate the wonder of every created thing. The mere thought of death somehow makes every blessing vivid, every happiness more luminous and intense. We may not know how our contest with sickness will end, but we have felt the ineluctable touch of God.

What is man that Thou art mindful of him? We don't know much, but we know this: No matter where we are, no matter what we do, no matter how bleak or frightening our prospects, each and every one of us who believe, each and every day, lies in the same safe and impregnable place, in the hollow of God's hand.' T. Snow

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Our Shitzu's

Photobucket Album

Monday, August 11, 2008

My Redeemer Lives Please turn off the music on my sidebar to watch this!

My yard...hard to believe it is August!











My husband built the Arbor for me for our 15th Anniversary just a month before he fell on a roof and became disabled...On Aug. 27th we will celebrate our 25th Anniversary...hugs, cheryl

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Saturday, August 9, 2008

Broken China Soldered Jewelry

Here are some different jewelry pieces made from broken china or a piece of glass soldered together...then put together with beads for a necklace!






Thursday, August 7, 2008

Bow day but they wouldn't pose very good!


I tried to get them to pose and they were just not in the mood...hugs, cheryl

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

People needing help with medication ..here is an awesome site to share!

So many people need help with medications and have no where to turn...my daughter has been able to get help here and even many doctors do not know about this site! Please share this information with your doctors office to help others or your pharmacy as they have so many people that cannot afford their medications ...Pay it Forward...http://www.needymeds.com/ check this out..almost every kind of medication is on here...hugs, cheryl
Lindsay has been able to get help here...it really does work!

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

I was just diagnosed with this disease Eosinophilic esophagitis

For years I have told my doctors I choke on food and somedays it is really bad as you cannot get the food up or down..if you are alone it can get really scarey as you can hardly imagine not being able to breath as bread or meat is stuck in your airway...my girls are use to mom going to the other room trying to cough, spit or get what ever is stuck out of the way...I was finally sent to a GI specialist in May that did the barium study and then was told I would need to have an endoscope to see what else might be wrong...that was last Monday and on Friday she called to tell me I had Eosinophilic esophagitis...I was like can you spell that for me...then on Monday of this week Aug 4 I had another appointment with her and she told me more about this and I would be put on an inhaler and sent to an allergist for food testing...that is on Aug 23 of this month..never dreamed all of this from choking on food...now the strange thing is my brother also has had this for years and they could not find out what was wrong with him so he now has an appointment with the same doctor and she is going to scope him to see if he is also diagnosed with Eosinophilic esophagitis. She told me they do not know a lot about it and if it is hereditary so this should be interesting if we both are effected by this and all these years no one could tell us what is wrong with us...then to find out they just put medical codes to this disease in July is amazing...will let you know how this goes...hugs, cheryl

PS Having an MRI of my neck on Thursday as it is not getting better with the injections I have had in the last two months...


APFED Announces Approval of ICD9 codes for Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disorders

(July 15, 2008) APFED announced today that ICD-9-CM codes have been approved for
Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disorders, EGID, by the National Counsel for Health Statistics, NCHS. APFED submitted its proposal to the NCHS in September 2007 for four diseases: eosinophilic esophagitis, gastritis, gastroenteritis and colitis, all types of EGIDs. Thousands of patients suffer from these debilitating disorders; however until now they could not be coded correctly, making it difficult for medical professionals or researchers to determine how large a percentage of the population had these disorders.

The ICD-9-CM coding system is an international classification system which groups related diseases and procedures for the purpose of reporting statistical information. ICD- 9-CM codes provide a uniform language, and thereby serve as an effective means for reliable nationwide communication among physicians, patients, and third parties (QCMetrix.com). ICD-9-CM codes are necessary for billing, insurance and medical records, disease management, treatment advances, research and national statistics.

Even though suggestions for ICD-9-CM codes are normally not initiated by patient advocacy organizations, APFED, in keeping with its progressive mission to create awareness of EGID, felt the need to be at the forefront of these requests. Over the last two years, APFED worked with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Center for National Health Statistics to create unique ICD-9-CM diagnosis codes for EGID.

"Approval of these ICD-9-CM codes will permit accurate classification of these disorders and bring recognition of EGID to a new level", stated Beth Mays, APFED President and Founder.

NCHS has classified the following codes to designate the specific catagories of EGID:
530.13 Eosinophilic Esophagitis
535.7 Eosinophilic Gastritis
558.41 Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis
558.42 Eosinophilic Colitis

Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disorders, EGID, are distinct diseases affecting the gastrointestinal tract, which render the patient unable to tolerate food proteins. Recent demographic studies estimate that more than 1:2000 children live with eosinophilic esophagitis, in which only the esophagus, the tube connecting the mouth to stomach, is affected. Statistics on the adult population are currently unknown.

As the medical community becomes more aware of Eosinophilic Disorders, these numbers are expected to rise. Due to the lack of awareness among the medical community and the general public of these disorders, patients may wait 2 to 4 years to obtain an accurate diagnosis and receive proper treatment. More often than not, these disorders are misdiagnosed as other diseases.

Treatments for these disorders include total food elimination, requiring patients to live off an elemental formula which can be taken either orally or via a feeding tube; limited/restricted diets; and/or steroid treatments. There is currently no cure for EGID.

EGIDs are becoming increasingly common, with an incidence similar to household names such as Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis. Due to lack of accurate reporting, the true prevalence is not known, a problem APFED feels the new ICD-9-CM codes will solve. Unique codes are needed in order to allow researchers to track or identify patients with these disorders, develop new treatments, permit accurate reporting of EGIDs, and improve awareness.

APFED, a non-profit 501(c)3 volunteer-run patient advocacy organization, supports patients and families living with eosinophilic disorders.

For more information, please contact Beth Mays at 713-498-8216.

American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders (APFED) is a 501c3 non-profit organization dedicated to patients and their families coping with eosinophilic disorders. APFED strives to expand education, create awareness, and support research while promoting advocacy among its members.

Monday, August 4, 2008

A Good Will Find ...$60 turns into over $5000! Amazing




The Country Church" - 1985 - 20" x 24"
750 Edition/20 Artist Proofs
Available:
#142 (signed on back) $2000
"Farm & Feed Store" - 1985 - 20" x 24"
750 Edition/20 Artist Proofs
Available:
#14 $3,500 OBO
#168 $2,750 OBO
#384 $3000 OBO
#656 Signed $2600 OBO
I stopped at my favorite store yesterday and was just ready to leave when I heard a lady say those are Hargrove paintings...I stopped to look and another person was looking at them and she walked away as they were $29.95 each...I walked over and we started talking and she told me I should buy them as she has a bunch of them and she paid over $250 for small one's years ago..we looked at the dates and they were from 1985 and 86....I thought mmmm should I or not..I called my mom to see if she had a coupon and she didn't and told me don't as they were too expensive but I told her they would look really nice as they just got done redmodeling the kitchen and she needed something on the walls...I didn't listen and bought them..the lady told me to keep one and sell one on Ebay...I went over and we put them up and they are beautiful...one is perfect in the office where my dad sits and that is the church..he can look at it where he sits everyday! Then the Feed store match's here kitchen and looks perfect on that wall..we still had no idea how much they were worth..I got up today and looked online and found this site...I couldn't believe it! Now my dad tells me how much he loves looking at that Church today...we both laughed and I told him it goes in the Trust it comes back to me then....so my 60 dollar investment at Good Will is really a Good Deal as we have numbers 77 and 287 of the 750 painted..and they are the big paintings...Isn't this one of those amazing stories that I never thought it would be me saying I found this and it was worth something..hugs, cheryl A Good way to start a Monday! My dad says he isn't selling them..he likes them more now that they are worth this...lol He is too funny!
http://www.hargrovepaintings.com/index.html

Friday, August 1, 2008

Ecclesiastes 7:14

When times are good, be happy;
but when times are bad, consider:
God has made the one as well as the other.
Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about his future.
Ecclesiastes 7:14


God allows both good times and bad times to come to everyone. He blends them in our lives in such a way that we cannot predict the future or count on human wisdom and power. We usually give ourselves the credit for the good times. then in bad times, we tend to blame God without thanking him for the good that comes out of it. When life appears certain and controllable, don't let self satisfaction or complacency make you too comfortable or God may allow bad times to drive you back to him. When life seems uncertain and uncontrollable, don't despair - GOD is in control and will bring good results out of tough times.